The Rise of Reddit? What Brands Should Know About Reddit Ecommerce and Its Impact on the New AI-Powered Buying Journey

Google used to feel like magic: type in a question, get a clean list of answers. Bada bing, bada boom.

But lately? It can feel like a game of “I spy.” Sponsored posts pepper the page, and though artificial intelligence (AI)-powered blurbs are accessible, they’re not always cogent.

It’s one reason why many shoppers are skipping the search bar and heading straight to Reddit, once called “the front page of the internet.”

Reddit ecommerce is more popular than ever, as customers have increasingly added “Reddit” to their internet and shopping searches to seek out more reliable results, according to Business Insider.

So, what does this shift mean for ecommerce brands? Take a closer look at the implications for marketing on Reddit, along with ways brands can join the conversation without sacrificing their authenticity in the process.

Reddit’s Integration With Google Search and AI Is Reshaping Product Discovery

For the uninitiated, Reddit is a sprawling message board built from more than 100,000 “subreddits” — niche communities organized around every topic imaginable, from skincare and sneakers to power tools and parenting hacks. Users, normally anonymous, offer their unvarnished opinions, which are voted up or down by fellow anonymous Redditors.

This mix of candid reviews and community validation has earned the site a reputation as a trusted focus group and a social commerce outpost. In effect, it’s a forum where product claims receive public-facing stress testing amid a wide, discerning audience.

Reddit is so compelling that the company says 90% of its 300-plus million users say they regularly consult the site for product information.

Google itself has been more closely tied to Reddit for years. In 2024, the company signed a deal worth roughly $60 million a year for exclusive access to Reddit’s data, feeding raw conversations directly into its search results and AI tools, according to Social Media Today.

These conversations have grown even more valuable as more consumers turn to generative AI (GenAI) and other copilots during the research phase of their buying journey.

But Reddit-based conversations aren’t just influencing what people learn about products; they’re increasingly determining what ends up in their carts.

Why AI Systems Crave Reddit Conversations Versus Traditional Marketing Content

AI algorithms are tasked with distilling complex input into clear recommendations, which is why they tend to favor Reddit’s community-filtered, conversational format more often than a static product page or one-sided brochure.

AI systems are drawn to Reddit content for a variety of reasons:

• Reddit content tends to be trusted, candid, and human, often in a way that’s rarely replicated in traditional marketing.
• Reddit threads typically feature unfiltered conversations between customers sharing pros, cons, and personal experiences — a venerable gold mine of information for GenAI platforms.
• Threads bring together dozens of perspectives and follow-up questions, while the upvote system highlights the most useful answers.

Reddit’s content is also, to an extent, timeless. Millions of users revisit old threads — sometimes years old — to add updates, corrections, or new experiences.

This evolving community input can help ensure AI systems surface timely insights rather than static or outdated information.

Therefore, the discussions unfolding on Reddit today are already shaping tomorrow’s AI-powered product recommendations.

3 Ways Brands Can 'Keep It Real' on Reddit

While Reddit does offer paid ads, it isn’t the place for slick tricks — in fact, that’s probably the single worst approach your brand could take on the platform.

Instead, consider the following approaches:

1. Behave as Invested Community Members First, and Marketers Second

Contribute insights, share expertise, and even lean on humor when it fits, rather than parachuting in with bland sales pitches.

One useful rule of thumb: Follow an 80/20 split — spend 80% of your time interacting and 20% promoting.

2. Embrace Reddit-Native Formats Like ‘Ask Me Anything’

Reddit-native formats, like “Ask Me Anything (AMA),” provide a great opportunity for brand leaders or subject-matter experts to field questions directly from Redditors.

AMAs can be a powerful way to build credibility. When they’re done well, they reflect transparency, openness, and a willingness to meet users on their own terms.

3. Read the Room, and Mind Any Rules

Every subreddit is its own microculture, with distinct norms and rules — and brands break them at their peril. If it’s your first time posting to a subreddit, it’s important to take the time to learn the ins and outs of your target community.

In practice, that can mean coordinating with moderators before posting, or tailoring content so it feels organic to that space.

Long story short? Don’t treat subreddits like another ad channel. Treat them like communities — and show up the way a good neighbor would.

Avoiding ‘Cringe’ and Other Common Pitfalls of Reddit Ecommerce

Reddit can be a powerful driver of discovery, but it’s not without its risks, especially if you stoke the ire of the wrong community. According to digital marketing agency Single Grain, nearly two-thirds of Reddit threads featuring brand names contain negative sentiment.

Therefore, tread wisely. The same viral-in-waiting potential that can propel a funny AMA to the top of a subreddit can just as easily amplify criticism, which can be difficult to shake.

As mentioned earlier, unlike fleeting tweets or ephemeral Instagram stories, Reddit posts linger in Google’s search index — sometimes, for years.

According to research by Single Grain, 71% of Reddit content appearing in search results comes from older threads.

This means a post from 2023 can still influence potential customers in 2025, especially if it ranks highly and remains unresolved.

Reputation management on Reddit can be challenging. Brands need a strategy for success that includes monitoring, responding, and building community goodwill before avoidable crises arise. 

Your Brand Is (Most Likely) Already on Reddit

Reddit may have started as a niche hangout for those who were “extremely online” in the 2000s, but today, it’s fully elevated into the mainstream — fueling the product recommendations that millions of shoppers now rely on.

While Reddit ecommerce carries some risk, there’s an even bigger threat lurking for brands who ignore the channel entirely: letting other people shape your story for you. In an era when more shoppers are relying on Reddit and AI to make their purchases, it’s one gamble that ecommerce brands simply can’t afford to take.